This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)

Another unmissable and must-do moment on a trip to Jordan, in my opinion, is sleeping in Wadi Rum, in a Bedouin tented camp.

Sleeping in Wadi Rum

Entrance of a canyon with very high walls in the rocky desert of Wadi Rum, Jordan
The deserts are more varied than you might imagine and in Wadi Rum there are also canion like rock formations

Maybe it was because I had not yet read The 7 Pillars of Wisdom, the beautiful autobiographical novel by the celebrated Lawrence of Arabia; maybe it was the unbearable heat, but I just did not like Aqaba. Unlike Lawrence I stayed there very little, canceling the second night I had planned there and managing to plan an overnight excursion to the Wadi Rum desert, and never was there a better choice!

Some just do the day trip, but in my opinion it is a crime not to sleep under that sky. And in general, in life, nights slept in a desert are never enough.

Unlike the classic sandy desert, the characteristic feature of Wadi Rum is not the dunes, but the huge rock mountains and the dominant color which is red/orange.

Me in the Wadi Rum desert in Jordan; in the background one of the peculiar rock forms
This photo was taken of me by the Bedouin driver who accompanied me into the desert

The Bedouin cat

Because there was little tourism in those days in the Bedouin tented camp I was the only tourist. I had dinner together with two Palestinian drivers who were driving a group of Germans around. They had come to eat there because the food was better, and there was some small talk that further confirmed my sympathy for a truly unfortunate people.

The Bedouins made me smoke hookah and light a fire. Every night in the desert is above all a chance to enjoy incredible starry skies. On that occasion I did so together with a cat whom I befriended and who positioned himself exactly on my belly.

Sunset in Wadi Rum
As you can see in evidence the rocks are reddish and as the light changes they take on incredible colors

Admiring the stars in a desert makes you feel small, tiny and even insignificant, so it gives me a lot of serenity.

Home trip Welcome to Jordan (and Israel)

Previous stop Visiting Petra with playful stray dogs

Next stage What to do in Tel Aviv?

Sleeping in Wadi Rum also allows you to enjoy a spectacular sunset
In Wadi Rum even the sunset is spectacular this was my first desert night in my life

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Countries visited in my travel stories

Anecdotes, divided by type in travel narratives

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Fabio Viroli
Ho sempre avuto tante passioni, ma da sempre più o meno latenti, le principali sono viaggiare e scrivere. Tra le altre cose ho una laurea in psicologia; ho fatto per più di 30 anni l’allenatore di basket; leggo tanti libri; sono stato molto appassionato di sport e di musica rock; e faccio improvvisazione teatrale